June 27th, Orphanage visit

Note…it took me a while to post this, at it has been difficult to process.

I never thought going to an orphanage would be so tuff. Many people think I’m very strong, and I am…in many situations, but this experience here pulled at my heart and is still pulling, as I feel I left things/items/people/undone work behind. Our orphanage visit was on Monday and it is now Saturday in Nairobi and I’m still trying to express in writing on this blog my feelings. This is not all about me, rather the four of us, who had an experience we will never forget. I can only write from my perspective and perhaps Ajali and the girls will convey their thoughts and feelings to some of you at some point.

Many of you know about a year and a half ago Sanaa and I were reading an article about girls in Kenya going through puberty and how many of them missed school during that time of the month because they simply could not afford sanitary supplies. Some would sell their bodies in exchange for supplies, possibly end up pregnant or with HIV and then eventually not be able to continue their education. Sanitary supplies are expensive here compared to the average amount of money one makes, so it is not a priority. Some girls choose to use different cloths or other items as sanitary products, but we know they are not sanitary. I searched and searched and found a pattern that seemed easy enough for a non-sewer (me) to make reusable sanitary pads and went and bought fabric and everything needed, including a sewing machine and got to work. Just so you know- the extent of my sewing is very basic. I watched videos on how to do this and even how to thread the sewing machine, as this was all new to me. Over the last 1 1/2 years in my spare time, or in my “me” time I would sew these pads. Sanaa agreed to help at first but when it was all said and done she probably did 2 hours of work, which was fine because this was more so my idea. In the beginning my goal was 50 pads, then 100 and as I got faster I thought perhaps I could do 500 or 1000 even. In the end I made about 440 reusable pads. Thanks to friends and family for donating some supplies and money for this, I was able to make it happen!

I tried to decide what organization to donate to but there were so many rules and also some sketchy places that I didn’t trust. One company even told me to send then 500 pads to “try” via DHL shipping and if they liked them I could send more. I politely told them that I was doing this in my spare time, I was not a seamstress and that was not something i would be able to to.

You don't know what we went through at the airport to get all the stuff here....I was in tears by the way I was treated, the amount of time I had to wait and how I was compared to “others” in my country. We brought 2 large 24x24x24 boxes and one other large box as well. I still had still that would not fit, but will donate at some point. We donated about 440 reusable menstrual pads that I made, approx 350 pairs of woman's underwear, tons of bras, kids clothes, mens shirts and shorts, boys clothes, women's clothes, and shoes. Not to mention all these items were new. I believe that just because you are in need of something does not mean it should be used. I’m a former extremes couponer and my mom taught Dr me how to look for sales and also on the clearance rack! We brought coloring supplies, games, jump ropes, balls and pumps for them, frisbees and McDonald's was generous to donate approximately 100 Happy Meal toys. The orphanage owner said she will have enough underwear for 5 years! She was so thankful and said she will be able to move money around in her budget due to the donation. It was the largest donation they had ever received.

We planned to go there and donate all the stuff we had brought, learn more about the facility and also so the girls can play with the kids. I think they are tired of being around us adults lol. The owner also requested we teach a geography lesson, but when we arrived she said that she had forgot the kids were doing testing since the curriculum changed in the country so we would not be able to do that. Honestly, what we were going to teach sucked anyway, so this was perfect! This orphanage was clean and well kept. The children were just as excited to see us. Ajali and I toured the facility while the girls pumped air in balls and began playing with the kids…prior to this we all had Kenyan tea. There are approximately 130 children here between the ages of 4-20 years. Ajali and I also played with the kids. They asked tons of questions and we just hung out for a few hours.

They had a rabbit in a cage outside, which Jasmine loved, a chicken and a dog as well. We were offered lunch of rice and beans. Each child washes their own dishes after meals and the older children learn to cook. All the children wash their own clothes and and they are hung out to dry. There is no tv or internet and the facility runs off solar power, which took a long time to even have that. All the children seemed to be happy there, which is good, because for them it is a better life from what they had. They enjoy going to school, learning about Christ, reading their Bibles and singing. The staff and teachers live on the property in their own quarters. part of the reason is because when it rains the roads become muddy and are impossible to drive through. The teachers would not be able to come to work, so this is where they live with their families. If they have kids, their kids go to school here As well. These kids are taught until approximately 6th grade and then go off to another school, although they do come back home for breaks.

The students joked about Ajali not knowing how to speak Kikuyu and tried to teach him some lol. The enjoyed watching him take pictures and seeing their friends through the lens as he did it. The kids were really friendly and seemed so loving and glad to have us there.

We really enjoyed our time there and having the kids sing and perform for us was so nice! I will upload videos at some point. There was one little boy 5yr old Liam who grabbed at my heart. He is SO adorable. It was hard to leave and leave him there. You will see a pic of him and I below. Next time we are in Kenya, we hope to go back. The girls didn’t want to leave.